rocks and hard places
by thelinksthatconnectus
Summary: Peach returns to her dorm room to find everything-and everyone-out of place. Zelpeach college AU drabble


The room had been nearly spotless when Peach had left, the room neat and orderly, with everything in its place. Everything had been even, items aligned and the floor completely bare. Now, it hardly looked walkable. The only places that seemed untouched were Peach's desk and her bed, but everything else was a mess.

Even though she was slightly hazy and her legs and arms ached, Peach's eyes widened and a tense urge to clean filled her bones. This was not her room; it couldn't be. Three days before, it had been beautiful, the exact opposite of the stereotypical college dorm.

Now?

Now, it looked as if the place had been left to rot for three years instead. The only thing that was missing was a heavy layer of dust covering everything.

This, Peach told herself, cannot be happening.

She blinked.

Once.

Twice.

Third time's the charm.

Okay, this was happening.

But I can do something about it, right? Peach thought. She let out a weak yawn.

She stepped forward, placing her duffel bag and suitcase on the floor. One volleyball team meeting up state and everything went to hell.

One breath in.

One breath out.

Though she couldn't gain the buzz of victory again and the thrill of knowing that her team had made it to the finals, she could at least calm herself down. Calm was rational; calm was good. Now was not a good time to be angry or worried, not when it was one in the morning and the buzz of the coffee she had drank at nine had finally worn off.

Peach looked around the room once again.

It wasn't so bad, at least not when compared to some other dorm rooms. For one thing, it didn't stink, and looked as though it would only take forty-five minutes at most to clean up. It wasn't as if a tornado had come through the room.

Calm, Peach reminded herself, you have to stay calm.

Her words, however, became useless once she laid eyes on Zelda. Peach's eyes widened and her heart skipped a beat.

Zelda had blended in so well with the rest of the dirty room; the usually elegant, ever prepared girl was slumped over her desk next to a pile of empty coffee cups, her face buried in the pages of one of a number of textbooks that she had laid around the room. Her clothes covered the floor, and the ones she was wearing looked as though they belonged to her brother Link, at least judging by the way it looked two times bigger than her thin frame. If the clothes on the floor were any indication, then she didn't have much else to wear. A wave of messy, dull brown hair, standing up on all sides, hung over her head.

Oh, Zelda, Peach thought, stepping forward as lightly as she could. You promised me that you would take a break from studying.

She could still remember her roommate's words from three days before.

"I swear," she said, right after Peach had cornered her on the fact that she had only slept two hours the night before, "to not cram for finals."

These certainly weren't the exciting finals that Peach would soon be in. No, these were finals for classes that Peach couldn't even understand the homework for.

"It's not like you need to cram," Peach had said. "You practically know everything, Zelda!"

Zelda grumbled when Peach began to shake her shoulders. "What are you doing?"

She looked incredibly pale under the single yellow bulb of her desk lamp.

"Getting you to bed," Peach said. "To think, I had to come back and see you like this! Zelda, what have you done with yourself?"

"You wouldn't..." She paused, her words slurring slightly. She yawned. "Understand."

"I understand that you made a promise to me." Peach paused before lowering her tone; Zelda had it bad enough without Peach snapping at her. "I'm just really worried about you. You of all people should know that this isn't healthy."

For once, Peach was thankful for all the work that her coach had made her do. The extra muscle strength was certainly needed to carry Zelda over towards their bunk bed.

Peach sighed. It didn't look as though she would be getting Zelda up onto her top bunk, no matter how strong she was. There was too high of a risk of accidentally dropping her.

"Why are you doing this, Peachie?" Zelda's words were barely above a whisper and they were her only resistance. Beyond that, she didn't fight as Peach laid her down in Peach's bed. She looked so small, dwarfed under Peach's bright pink comforter and matching colored heart shaped pillow. Her eyes were half shut and the mattress lowered, accepting her weight.

"Because," she said, leaning down and brushing a quick kiss against Zelda's lips, "I love you. Why do you think I made you keep the promise in the first place? Do you think that I wanted to see you like this?"

She doubted that Zelda heard the last words. Already, her eyes were closed and her soft breathing steady.

Peach smiled, fading only when she turned and saw the room. It didn't look so easy to tame. Her suitcase and duffle bag sat by the door, unopened and as filled as ever.

Later, Peach thought. She yawned again, a louder one than before. Right now I need some sleep too.

She walked over to Zelda's desk and turned off the desk lamp, flooding the room in darkness. With slow, careful steps, Peach walked over to the bunk bed and slowly climbed the ladder to the top.

Zelda's comforter was surprisingly soft, despite its rather simple look. There were no frills, no special pillows or stuffed animals on it like Peach's bed had. Still, it was nice; the scent of Zelda's shampoo still clung to her pillow, and as Peach's eyes slowly closed, her nose filled with the scents of vanilla and lilac.


End file.
